Kohima, Dimapur air quality above permissible limit

Dimapur: The air quality in Kohima and Dimapur districts continues to exceed the permissible limit of 60, said Yanathhung Yanthan, Scientist ‘B’, Nagaland Pollution Control Board, on Monday.

During an awareness and capacity-building programme organised by Dimapur district administration as part of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) at Don Bosco School, Yanthan said the annual average concentration of Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) recorded in Dimapur city in 2022 was 97, against 79 in 2019, thus showing an increasing trend in RSPM level.

The annual average concentration of RSPM in Dimapur city was measured by collecting data from various locations including Bank Colony, Dhobinala, NPCB Office, Tenyiphe-II Chumoukedima, Nagarjan, Viola Colony, and Burma camp, from 2019 to 2022, he said.

During the same period, Kohima exhibited a positive trend in air quality, with a score of 72 in 2022 against 91 in 2019, 89 in 2020, and 77 in 2021.

The data on the annual average concentration of RSPM in Kohima was collected from Opposite NST office, PWD Junction, Midland colony, and High School Junction, it was informed.

Air quality in Kohima and Dimapur districts has been categorised as “non-attainment cities” in relation to particulate matter (PM10).

The scientist mentioned that the NCAP was launched as a long-term, time-bound, national level strategy by the government to achieve 40% reduction in particulate matter by 2026 and that the National Air Monitoring Programme (NAMP) network consist of 883 operating stations covering 379 cities or towns in 28 states and seven union territories in the country.

Under the NAMP, there are 11 manual monitoring stations and one Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAAQMS) station in Nagaland, out of which seven manual stations are in Dimapur and four in Kohima.

Major sources of air pollution in the region are vehicular movement on dusty roads, vehicular emissions, burning of waste, and emissions from small-scale industries, Yanthan said, adding that Nagaland faces the issue of no proper classification of areas for commercial and residential purposes, which exacerbates the problem of air pollution.

In his presentation, the scientist also spoke about the Solid Waste Management Rules and Plastic Waste Management Rules, introduced in 2016, while highlighting the duties and responsibilities of local authorities, village panchayats, census towns, and urban agglomerations in managing solid and plastic waste.

The rules prohibit littering and open burning of waste, and also require waste segregation at the source, he informed, adding that violators are liable to pay environmental compensation ranging from INR 5,000 for simple burning to INR 25,000 for bulk waste burning by the National Green Tribunal.

According to statistics, 43% of all lung disease and lung cancer deaths were linked to air pollution and it was also responsible for 1.7 million deaths in India during 2019, which is the highest in the world, he said.

Regarding waste management in Nagaland, Yanthan said that only Kohima city has a scientific waste treatment plant with 50 TPD capacity, which is funded under the Asian Development Bank-assisted North Eastern Region Urban Development Programme (NERUDP) funded through MoHUA, while other urban local bodies (ULBs) in the state have only dumping sites without proper waste treatment facilities.

EAC Dimapur, Imlijungla Lemtur, delivered the keynote address and SDO (C) Dimapur, L. Samuel proposed the vote of thanks.

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During an awareness and capacity-building programme organised by Dimapur district administration as part of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) at Don Bosco School, Yanthan said the annual average concentration of Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) recorded in Dimapur city in 2022 was 97, against 79 in 2019, thus showing an increasing trend in RSPM level.